Surface condenser



Jem. 27. 1925.

- L. D. LOVEKIN SURFACE CONDENSERl Filed May 8, 1923 Annnnnnnnnn Patented Jan. 27, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LUTHER D. LOVElEIDl', OF ARDMORE, PENNSYLVANIA.

SURFACE CO'NDENSER..

Application filed. May 8,

To all whom at may concern.'

Be it known that I, LUTHER D. LovniiiN,

a citizen of the United States ot America, and resident ot' Ardmore, county of Montw gomery, State ot Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new and useful Improvenient in Surface Condensers, of which the following is a true and exact description., reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which term a part thereof.

My invention relates to surface condenA sers of the general kind described in my Patent 1,264,195 of AprilV 30, 1918. The object ot my invention is to provide for a better flow of steam through the cooling tubes and tor the use ot the cooling water in the most eiiicient manner.

The nature ot my improvements will be best understood as described in connection with the drawing in which they are illus'- trated and in which- Figure 1 is a cro-ss sectional view oit my improved condenser, and

Figure 2 a sectional elevation on the line 2 2 of Fig. l.

A indicates the condenser shell having an opening at its top for the admission of steam indicated at A. At each end ot' the shell are the heads for the cooling water indicated at B and C, the head C being divided into two chambers C and C2 by a partition C3, C4 indicating the opening into the head for the entrance of cooling water and C5 the opening into the head 'for the outflow ot water. D is a group of cooling tubes extending through the shell and located in the upper section of the shell. This group of tubes has a generally arch-shaped torni and is so disposed as to leave the steam spaces, indicated at F, F, between the sides ot the'arch shaped group of tubes and the walls ot the shell. E and E indicate two lateral groups of tubes located in the lower section of the shell and spaced from the wall of the shell by downwardly contracting steam passages indicated at F F', the tops ot these steam passages registering with the steam passages F, F, so that-steam can flow treely along the sides ot the shell. E2 indicates a central group ot cooling tubes located chietly in the lower section ot the shell, spaced from the upper group ot' tubes as indicated at Gr, and tro-m the lateral groups by the vertical passages indicated at G', G2. H, H, are rain plates located be- 1923. serial No. 637,443.

tween the upper group of tubes and the lower lateral groups of tubes and H is a rain plate preferably of curved form, as shown, located over the top of the central lower group of tubes and in such position as not to interfere with the steam space indicated at G. l is a casing extending up through the lower central group of tubes and formed with openings, indicated at I, l', etc., for the entrance of air. rihis casing l communicates with the chamber I2 which is in communication with an air pump. J is a water seal surrounding the opening' A2 in the bottom ot the shell A and J is an opening into the chamber P by which it is connected with the wet air pump which draws off the condensate and gases. The walls of the chamber I2 extend down into the water seal, as indicated at K. In the construction illustrated, the water entering the chamber C2 passes through the three lower groups ot ttubes to the chamber B and thence through the upper group ot tubes indica-ted at D into the chamber C and to exhaust.

The steam entering the shell through the opening A passes, tor the most part, through the cooling tubes D into the space indicated at G, butl in my new construction va portion of the steam is permitted to iiow freely past the upper group ot tubes through the passages F, F, and into the converging passages F F', from which the steam passes through the lateral tube groups indicated at E and E. The air and uneondensible gases with some uncondensed steam ordinarily mixed with them, pass from the passages G into the lower cen-- tral tube group E2 and into the casing l. from which they pass through the chamber I2 to the air pump.

My condenser is designe-d so that the latent heat oii the steam will, under the best conditions, be completely extracted in the tube groups D and E, E, leaving no work for the central lower group oi:1 tubes except the cooling ot the air so as to condense it as much as possible and lessen the work on the air pump. It is advisable, however, that the central lower tube group E2 should have more surface area than that merely required for the cooling ot the air, as, under some conditions, uncondensed steam in small quantity will pass to this group.

Having now described my invention,

what I cla-im asV new andv desire,v to secure by Letters Patent', is.:

l. In a surface condenser comprising a tubesl-ocated. in the. lower half of the shell with downwardly contracting steam spaces between the outer, sides of said` groups and the. shell, and a. central group of tubes locatedl in thev lower section of the shell between and spaced from the lateral groups in combination with rain plates located between the upper group and central lower' group otv tubes and between the upper group and. the lower lateral groups whereby` condensate; from the upper. tube group is ydirected intotthe spaces between the lateral andv central lower tube groups, and with an air outlet opening into the lower centraltube group.

2. In a surface condenser comprising u shell havin enA openi at its topt for the entrance o steam, a horizvntal tubes extending through the shell for cooling water, the construction in which the tubes are disposed in groups one extending across the upper part of the shell in such a way as to leave steam spaces between its sides and theside. of the, shell, two lateral groups of tubes located in the lower half of the shell with downwardy contracting steam spaces between the outer sides of said grou s and the shell', and a. central group of tu es located in the lower section of the shell between and spaced from the lateral groups, in combinationl with rain plates located between the upper group and central lower group of tubes and between the upper group and the lower lateral groups whereby condensate from the upper tube group is directed into the spaces between the lateral and central lower tube groups, with an air outlet opening into the lower central tube group and means for circulating water first through the three lower tube groups and then through the upper tube gloup.

LUTHER D; LOVEKN. 

